The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Wednesday (August 17) unveiled the Men’s Future Tours Programme (FTP), confirming that 12 Full Members Nations will play more international cricket across each of the three formats in the period of 2023-27.

“The 12 Members will play a total of 777 international matches – 173 Tests, 281 ODIs and 323 T20Is – in the 2023-2027 FTP cycle compared to the 694 in the current one,” ICC’s media release stated.

“This includes the next two cycles of the ICC Men’s World Test Championship, multiple ICC events and a host of bilateral as well as tri-series action,” it added.

The new FTP also dismissed the notion that the international cricket calendar will be squeezed with the rise of T20 leagues across the globe.

The Indian cricket team will be taking part in the five-match Test series against England and Australia during the 2023-27 cycle. Overall, India will play 38 Tests, 42 ODIs and 61 T20Is from 18th August 2022 to February 2027.

The third and fourth editions of the World Test Championship will see Australia, England and India playing five-match Test series. The WTC cycles, running from 2023-25 and 2025-27, also feature 19 two-match series and five three-match series each in the two editions.

One of the major highlights of the FTP is the two separate five-match Test series between India and Australia in each of the upcoming WTC cycles.

For the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, India will visit Australia in the 2023-25 WTC cycle while a reciprocal tour is slated to be held in the 2025-27 edition.

It will be the first time in over 30 years that the two sides will clash in a five-match Test series, the last time being 1992.

The upcoming cycle of the FTP also features five major ICC events, starting with the Cricket World Cup next year in India.

West Indies and the USA will host the T20 World Cup in 2024, which will be followed by the return of the Champions Trophy in 2025 to be hosted by Pakistan.

India and Sri Lanka will jointly host the T20 World Cup in 2026 and the FTP cycle will be rounded off by the Cricket World Cup in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia in 2027.

ICC GM of Cricket Wasim Khan said: “I’d like to thank our Members for the effort that has gone into creating this FTP for the next four years. We are incredibly lucky to have three vibrant formats of the game, with an outstanding programme of ICC global events and strong bilateral and domestic cricket and this FTP is designed to allow all cricket to flourish.”

(With ICC inputs)